


All Our Secrets

by heirtothehacker



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Crushes, Do not read if you don't like smut, F/F, F/M, Feelings, Friends With Benefits, Ignoring canon timeline, Lesbian Sex, Lies, Secret Relationships, Secrets, Semi AU, Sex, Smut, Straight Sex, Team Arrow, The League of Assassins - Freeform, Tommy!, no one is dead, smoaking assassin, unrequited?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-12-31
Updated: 2015-01-07
Packaged: 2018-03-04 12:52:59
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,963
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3068672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heirtothehacker/pseuds/heirtothehacker
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nyssa travels to Starling City in secret to try and get Sara back. She finds Sara and Oliver in a precarious situation and leaves unannounced, tracking down Felicity Smoak. Alcohol leads to a one night stand that develops into a secret friends with benefits agreement. With everyone keeping secrets it is only a matter of time before the delicate balance of relationships is thrown out of whack. The only question is: how long will it take for Team Arrow to turn into a train wreck?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> WARNING: This is my first story and therefor my first go at writing sex. It's probably terrible but I hope you all like it.
> 
> Also, be prepared to throw away Arrow's timeline. I'll be using some events of canon in edited ways but this is semi AU.

**NYSSA:**

 

From the shadows she watches them collide, sweaty, high on adrenaline and with enough passion to set the lair on fire. Nyssa observes as they grab at each other, uncaring of the bruises she knows will be all that will be left of this moment in time. Neither is holding back their strength as they tear off each other’s clothes, fighting to pin the other to the sweat-slicked mat beneath them.

When Sara is laid bare Nyssa slips away, unable to watch. She utilizes every piece of training bestowed on her by her father to slip away without alerting either of them to her presence. The air in the alley outside the club is chilly but not unbearable. Enough to wake her up and force her to admit that she had not been hallucinating. It stings more than expected, the notion that her yellow bird has flown away and moved on. The fact that it is with Oliver Queen smarts even more, enough so that she wants to go back and show him why she is the Heir to the Demon.

She decides against it though, after all she is not meant to be in Starling City by any official capacity and therefor Sara cannot be found guilty of being tactless when she has no reason to act any other way than accordingly. Instead her path changes as she parkours across the city and she finds herself at the fire escape of Felicity Smoak. Although they have never officially met Nyssa knows enough of her from Sara. She knows instinctively that the blonde will take her in and if for some unseen reason she needs to use force, it would be nothing of a challenge to incapacitate her.

It alarms her when the glass window slides noiselessly as she pushes against it. Felicity Smoak should know better. _Oliver Queen_ should know better. Starling City is hardly a safe place to live and with their line of work it should not be so easy to gain entrance to her apartment. She nimbly climbs through the open window shutting it behind her just as quietly. The room is dark, the only source of light is the television showing some reality show Nyssa has not had the time or want for.

She creeps around the apartment, finding another source of light in the kitchen. The freezer is open and a blonde girl in sushi pajamas is bent over rummaging through a shelf for something.

 

“You know you should be more careful, the city is not safe, especially not for someone in your line of work.”

Felicity jolts, jerking upwards, narrowly avoiding gashing her head on the shelf above her head. “Oh my God! Who are you? I know I’ve done some bad things but nothing that warrants being assassinated! We can work this out. You want money? I can wire money to any account you want. You want someone put on a no fly list? Two people? Please don’t hurt me, I have friends in strange places and they will care.”

Nyssa smiles. “I am Nyssa. Daughter of Ra's al Ghul. Heir to the demon.”

Felicity no longer looks like a scared woodland creature. “Felicity Smoak, MIT, Class of ’09.”

 

Nyssa knew she was already enamored with Felicity Smoak, the way the blonde had straightened up when Nyssa had relayed her full name and title, unafraid to shoot back with her own. It showed bravery and gall, an attitude that clearly said she knew assassins and that they did not impress her.

 

“Is it weird that the only thing running through my mind is how shiny your hair is?” Felicity blurts out, wide eyed still clutching the ice cream container to her chest.

“Your freezer,” Nyssa points, when the machine begins beeping angrily.

“Crap,” Felicity shuts the freezer door. “Sorry, you’ve got me flustered because I know assassins but they don’t usually do house calls. Why _are_ you here? Not that I want you to leave I’m just confused because we’ve never actually met before. Is Sara okay? Is Oliver okay?”

“Ta-er al-Sahfer and Oliver Queen are fine,” despite her training Nyssa can’t help how bitter she sounds.

“Okay I know that tone of voice, you sound more like my Vegas cocktail waitress mother than you do big scary assassin. So that means this,” she gestures to the mint chip, “needs to go and we need to pull out the good stuff. You drink wine?”

“Among other things,” she agrees.

“Okay just make yourself at home. You can raid through my draws for clothes if you want? Or not, it’s just an offer,” Felicity babbles nervously.

Nyssa bites her lip to suppress a smirk. “Is there anywhere you prefer me to keep my weapons?”

“Not on your body and not where we can drunkenly hurt ourselves?”

 

Nyssa nodded and leaves the small blonde in the kitchen. It doesn’t take long to navigate the modest apartment and find the master bedroom. Movie posters cover the walls, a quaint terrarium in the corner. Riffling through the chest of draws she finds the oddest collection of clothes imaginable. Brightly coloured clothes, animal printed skirts and an incredibly racy lingerie set that looks out of place given the rest of the wardrobe. She bypassed the cutesy shirts and frilled sleeping shorts and chooses a soft, red, long-sleeved Henley and worn out sleeping shorts with a polka dot pattern that is almost faded to the point of invisibility.

She wrapped her weapons in her clothes and hid the bundle in Felicity’s sock draw. When the room is as tidy as it was before she entered she leaves, shutting the door behind her. In the lounge room the television is on mute and on the coffee table is two bottles of wine and a full wine glass. Felicity is curled up in a blanket, sipping her own glass that is now half full.

 

Felicity looks at her and sighs. “How is it that you even make my old pajamas look awesome? If I wore that I would look like a three year old.”

“And do you look like a three year old in that lingerie set?”

Felicity chokes. “Oh God. Seriously? Is the first lesson in Assassin School lose all modesty?”

“I believe our first lesson was wax on wax off,” she smiles when Felicity gives her a disbelieving look. “My father is a fan of the Karate Kid.”

 

Felicity pulls a face and gestures to the empty space next to her on the couch. Nyssa takes the nonverbal queue and settles next to her, stealing some of the blanket and taking the glass of wine Felicity offers her.

 

“So what brings you to my apartment? I’m sure you have hackers of your own. Not that I’m a hacker,” Felicity grimaces. “I _really_ don’t like that word. I mean _technically_ I could be considered a cyber terrorist but I use my powers for the greater good! Which I just realized makes me sound like Albus Dumbledore and that’s so not what I want to be compared to. Do you even know who he is? I’m sure you have access to books and the Internet but do assassins have vacation time? What _do_ you do for fun? Or is killing people fun for you? Wait don’t answer that. Actually, I suppose we should start our relationship off with honesty so tell me. Not that we’re in a relationship- Not that we have a relationship- I meant more like a friendship but we don’t have to be friends if you don’t want and I swear I’m going to stop talking in five, four, three, two, one…”

The babbling is oddly endearing and Nyssa can’t help but smile as she takes a long drink of her wine. “I’m here because I came across information I would much rather forget and Sara speaks of you as a person who could be trusted. Strictly speaking I am not supposed to be here and Sara is thus unaware of my presence and I would rather her not know. The league does have hackers within its ranks although I am not sure how their skill would compare to yours. I _do_ know who Albus Dumbledore is; even the League has watched the movies although I preferred the books. League members gain vacation time depending on their missions and how well they carry out their work. Killing is a necessity but I’ll admit that the hunt is enjoyable especially if the target is a challenge. I am willing to do what needs to be done but there are others in the league that are bloodthirsty and take far more pleasure in it than I do. As for our future friendship? I can be… amendable to that.”

Felicity stares at her. “I’ve never heard an assassin speak so much at one time. I mean to be fair Oliver doesn’t really talk and he isn’t really an assassin but Sara doesn’t really talk at all and Helena mainly just threatened me but again, not really an assassin.”

“How many not assassins do you know?” Nyssa can’t help but be curious.

“I’m not sure, it’s all very confusing at this point.” Felicity admits. “So what did you find out that was so bad? You don’t have to tell me, I’m just curious.”

“I went to your lair to see Sara,” Nyssa says slowly. “To see if she would consider reconciliation.”

“Did she say no? I mean obviously she didn't say yes...”

“I did not get the chance to speak to her, she was preoccupied.”

“Preoccupied? Oh. _Oh._ Oh my God. With Oliver?”

Nyssa can see the hurt on Felicity’s face and her stomach drops. “You have feelings for him? I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have told you.”

“But in the Arrow Cave?” Felicity whimpers. “That’s our _home_. Why would Oliver do that? Why would I even ask that, of course Oliver would do that. Men are so stupid. Does he not realize that other people work in that space? I’m going to have to go down there tomorrow and scrub down the whole place with industrial strength bleach. Please tell me they didn’t do it on my desk.”

“I do not believe they used your desk.”

Felicity deflates and reaches for the bottle of wine. “I’m going to need all of this and maybe some of the second one.  Or should we just get straight to the vodka? Do you like vodka? I like vodka, not as much as wine but I don’t think there is enough wine in this apartment to help me forget.”

 

Nyssa watched as Felicity lurched forward, climbing off the couch and leaving the room. She can hear the blonde muttering to herself in the kitchen and it only takes her half a minute to enter the room with a bottle of vodka in her left had and two shot glasses in her right. Felicity drags the coffee table closer and curls back up on the couch, measuring two full glasses of clear liquid. Nyssa takes one from her and knocks it back fairing better than her companion who grimaces and coughs.

 

Felicity looks abashed. “It’s been a while since I’ve had vodka.”

“I’m the same way with tequila.” Nyssa offers.

“Tequila,” Felicity’s nose crinkles. “I haven’t had tequila since my MIT days and for a very good reason. I start dancing on top of tables and think being a stripper is a viable career choice when I drink tequila. My roommate even gave me a stripper name. _Cinnamon._ ”

Nyssa raises a sculpted eyebrow. “That is something I think I’ll need to see.”

Felicity blushes and pushes her glasses up her nose. “Lets just hope nothing bad enough happens that we think tequila is a good idea.”

“Fair enough,” she agrees. “Tell me about yourself?”

“There isn’t much to know.”

“Now _that_ I don’t believe. There has to be a reason why everyone is so bewitched by you. Few people catch Ta-er al-Sahfer the way you have.”

“I think it’s because I put my foot in my mouth a lot. I say things people just don’t because everyone else has a mouth filter and mine is nonexistent or has been on vacation for the past twenty something years…”

“Felicity Smoak you are avoiding my question.”

“I’m the only child of a single mother. I went to MIT on a scholarship and graduated top of my class. I work at Queen Consolidated as Oliver’s Executive Assistant and in the Arrow Cave as technical support.”

Nyssa purses her lips. “ _Technical support_. You still avoid my question. _Who are you?_ ”

“I don’t know. I’m me,” Felicity shrugs. “Isn’t that enough?”

 

Nyssa drinks her third shot, Felicity following after her. Their conversation turns to idle chatter and she answers Felicity’s questions about the league. She notices that Felicity’s verbalizations are rarely one tangent, wandering off without notice or warning. It is strange yet somehow appealing. Nyssa has not witnessed such honesty in years and it is refreshing.

 

As the shots of vodka continue and their sobriety spirals downwards into non-existence their conversation turns to brutal honesty.

 

“I just don’t know why he would do that,” Felicity rambles. “I mean why Sara? Why someone we have to work with every night? What the hell do the Lance siblings have that no one else does? Oh God, Laurel. Gorgeous Laurel. What is Laurel going to say? Will he tell her? Will Sara tell her? Why does this have to be so complicated? Can Oliver just not sleep with every girl he sees?”

It is in that moment that Nyssa truly studies Felicity. Her hair is down and messy, glasses gone. She has no make up on but her blue eyes stand out. “You are very beautiful, Felicity Smoak.”

Felicity blushes. “You can just call me Felicity.”

“You are very beautiful, _Felicity_.”

“So are you, Nyssa.” Felicity looks almost nervous.

“I would very much like to kiss you. Is that okay?”

 

Felicity bites her lip and nods. Nyssa tucks a stray lock of hair behind the blonde’s ear and almost feels stupid for doing so but she watches Felicity’s reaction, the way her breath hitches slightly. She leans in and presses her lips to Felicity’s, warm and slightly wet from the alcohol.

The kiss is slow and sweet. Nyssa’s hand moves to hold Felicity’s face as she slowly moves to straddle the blonde’s lap. Felicity’s hands find their way to Nyssa’s waist and Felicity opens her mouth to deepen the kiss. Their tongues explore each other’s mouth, slow and sensual. Nyssa’s free hand skim down Felicity’s body and she can feel the blonde shiver. She can feel Felicity’s hands, uncertain and itching to move beneath her shirt. Her hands cover Felicity’s, moving them under her shirt, encouraging the blonde to explore as much as she would like to.

She feels Felicity’s hands slide upwards, carefully stopping when she reaches the edge of Nyssa’s bra. Nyssa breaks their kiss and her lips press down Felicity’s neck, pausing to concentrate on Felicity’s collarbone. She sucks at the soft flesh and smiles when she sees the small bruise her actions leave behind. Her lips trail upwards again and she smiles into Felicity’s skin when she hears her sigh.

 

“I feel like you’re doing all the work here.” Felicity breathes.

Nyssa smiles and takes off her shirt. “Don’t be afraid, you can do whatever you are comfortable with.”

“Wow. But what is with everyone I know just taking off their shirts all the time?”

“Would you rather I put my shirt back on?”

Felicity shakes her head. “You can keep your shirt off. In fact you could just always not wear a shirt? I mean only if you wanted to… and not in public, society generally frowns on women who walk about topless. Me on the other hand? I’m totally on team topless Nyssa. That sounds really creepy doesn’t it? Sorry.”

Nyssa softly chuckles. “If it pleases you Felicity I could consider that.”

 

Felicity moves suddenly and kisses her. This time it is different though because the pressure has changed. Felicity’s lips are firm and insistent, in control and almost hungry. Nyssa’s hands slip under Felicity’s shirt and she bites the smaller girl’s lip when Felicity’s hands roam over her bra. Nyssa is internally thankful she had decided to wear her matching black underwear set. It is slightly girlier than her usual taste but it had been intended for Sara. The flash of hurt is brief and is washed away with the fleeting thoughts as Felicity’s hand sweeps down to rest on her behind. 

Nyssa’s hands move under Felicity’s bra and she squeezes firmly, pulling a moan from Felicity’s lips that interrupts their kiss. The blonde pulls away panting, head tilted back. Nyssa takes the opportunity to kiss down the bare flesh.

 

“Maybe we could go into my bedroom?” Felicity sighs.

“I would like that.”

 

Nyssa climbed off the smaller girl’s lap and tugged her by the hand off the couch. Felicity stumbles and crashed into her. Nyssa laughs and steadies her by the waist and stops to kiss her briefly. It takes them three minutes to get to Felicity’s bedroom and when they do Felicity looks at the bed wide eyed.

 

“If you aren’t comfortable with this-”

“No!” Felicity says too quickly. “I’m okay with this just give me a minute in the bathroom? I kind of need to pee.”

Nyssa bites her lip to stop the smile that threatens to show. “Of course.”

“Okay, you just wait here. Make yourself comfortable. Wait those two statements contradict themselves. Just do whatever you want, I’m going to go and... yeah.”

 

She watches Felicity leave the room and she closes the bedroom door, letting her pajama pants drop to the floor so she is only wearing her underwear set. She looks around the room more carefully this time than she had before. Two minutes later the en suite door opens and Felicity is standing in the door way awkwardly.

  
“Sorry I took so long, I kind of cleaned up. I didn’t really expect to be having sex tonight,” she babbles and hides her face in her hands. “Oh God.”

Nyssa walks until she is right in front of Felicity and she pulls down the blonde’s hands gently. “We don’t have to do this.”

“I want to. Just, kiss me? Before I get too nervous and start babbling again?”

 

Felicity looks so nervous and yet still so beautiful. Nyssa can’t help but drink her in slowly. Her hands find the edge of Felicity’s singlet and hike it upwards. Felicity takes the queue and helps slip off her top. It ends up somewhere in the corner of the room. Nyssa walks backwards, pulling Felicity with her by the waist. She stops when her body connects with the queen-sized bed. Turning around she pushes Felicity onto the bed and watches as the blonde scrambles backwards into the center on the sheets. 

Nyssa crawls onto the bed and settles between Felicity’s legs, kissing her with the same intensity of their first kiss. Their lips slide, tongues brushing. Nyssa moves back, breaking the kiss and kneeling. Her fingers brush down Felicity’s soft skin and goose bumps appear. The blonde closes her eyes when the assassin's hand sweeps across the material of her cotton shorts.

 

“Can I take these off?”

 

Felicity’s hips slant upwards and the assassin takes the wordless action as permission. She slides the shorts off quickly and throws them in the general direction of where the blonde’s top had fallen earlier. The action reveals Felicity’s underwear, soft pink in colour with a cute white bow. She leans forward to kiss it and the hacker squirms.

Nyssa trails kisses down Felicity’s legs, kissing the bend of her knee, lips ghosting across soft skin as she makes her way up and down the naked flesh. Felicity whines as she gets closer to her underwear, hands skirting under her own bra. Nyssa sucks on the skin of her hipbone, reaching to quickly unclip her own bra. She throws it away haphazardly and sits back on her knees to look at Felicity who is brushing her neck and collarbone with her own hand.

Felicity blushes, sitting up and kissing Nyssa’s chest gently. Nyssa’s fingers barely skim across the other woman’s back as she quickly unsnaps the bra clip and gently takes the item of clothing off her. Felicity’s hands quickly cover her breasts and Nyssa snorts softly, leaning in to kiss her again.

As they kiss Nyssa leans Felicity backwards again, hands gently pushing the blonde’s out of the way so she can touch her breasts. She squeezes, not hard enough to hurt but firm enough to make Felicity groan. She can feel the nipples harden underneath her fingers and she flicks them gently, rolling them between two fingers. Felicity’s hips buck up and Nyssa responds by grinding down. 

Nyssa pulls back and Felicity pouts until Nyssa moves down to take one of her nipples into her mouth. Her free hand slips downwards and across the soft cotton of the blonde’s underwear, sweeping teasingly. As she gently bites down on the areola she feels the material dampen. Her fingers slip under to teasingly brush against the other girl’s clit. The action makes Felicity moan and tangle her hand in Nyssa’s hair.

Nyssa slides off the bed, pulling off her underwear and helping Felicity as she fumbles trying to take her own off. When they are both naked Nyssa spreads Felicity’s supple legs and trails her fingers down her slick folds. Her fingers play with the blonde’s clit, rubbing in lazy circles. The sensation makes Felicity grind up into Nyssa’s hand. Nyssa replaces her fingers with her mouth, tracing circling the swollen sensitive bump with her tongue. Her fingers toy with Felicity’s folds, dipping in and pumping slowly before sliding out again.

Felicity moans, fisting the sheets, hips bucking. Nyssa sucks on her clit, gently nipping and biting with her teeth. One hand continues to play with entrance, the other reaching up to pinch a taught nipple. Her fingers pump in and out, searching for Felicity’s g spot as she works on her clit. She finds a rhythm that sets Felicity off, moaning and breath hitching. Soon she is falling apart, legs trembling and reflexively trying to close. Nyssa uses her hand to roughly work the girl’s clit and stares at the beautiful blonde as she falls apart, trembling with sweat sheened skin.

 

“Wow.” Felicity gasps.

Nyssa smiles. “I’m glad you liked it.”

“Do you want me to-”

 

Nyssa shakes her head, kissing Felicity slowly, working her own clit harshly. Felicity gently cups her breasts and Nyssa grabs her hand, squeezing hard. Felicity bites her lip and nods, duplicating the pressure. Nyssa moans, stroking hard, fingers stroking her inner walls swiftly. Her breathing quickens as the pressure builds. When she orgasms her body shakes and she flops back tiredly, loose limbed and happy. 

 

“What do we do now?” Felicity asks.

“Well there’s round two or we can go to sleep.”

Felicity looks at the clock on her bedside table. “Rain check on round two? I have work in five hours and I’m already dreading the headache.”

Nyssa nods, crawling over to the edge of the bed. She grabs the duvet and pulls it up, throwing it over herself and the blonde who wriggles closer to her side. “Goodnight my beautiful Felicity.”

“Goodnight, Nyssa.”

 

Nyssa closes her eyes. Felicity stills when she finds a comfortable position, head on Nyssa’s chest. There is nothing but the barely audible hum of traffic outside. Nyssa isn’t sure how long she lies there but as she is drifting off she hears Felicity’s quiet confession.

 

“I’m glad you came over, Nyssa.”

 

And when she kisses Felicity on the cheek and agrees in turn she knows she means it with every fiber of her being.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The concept of time is strange. When I uploaded the first chapter I actually had the draft of the first half of this chapter done. I swore it would only take me a day to do but then my week spiralled out of control. I had a friend visit town too so that knocked out three days of writing time. I wanted to make the deadline and the promise I made to you all last week so I wrote and edited (as best as I can, it's not my strong suit) this in a few hours. I hope it's okay, I'm not one hundred percent happy with this but to be honest it's just foundation work for the story. It does feature Tommy though so that made writing this chapter enjoyable.

 

FELICITY:

The first thing she notices is her blaring alarm clock. The second is the pounding in her head and the horrible sensation in her stomach she always attributes to the day after a big drinking session. Felicity decides after about three seconds that opening her eyes was a terrible idea until she remembers that her alarm clock is still shrieking and that if she doesn’t shut it off she’ll get another complaint from her neighbor with the cat.

It’s almost unreal how long it takes her to remember the events of the night before. Perhaps it is because the space next to her is empty. It isn’t cold though and the clothes Nyssa had borrowed the night before are no longer on the floor so it all leads to her conclusion that Nyssa might have left her bed but not her actual apartment. Felicity has always felt strange about one night stands that stay past their welcome but the idea of seeing Nyssa in her clothes again isn’t totally off putting. 

She pulls herself out of bed and blushes at her state of undress. She throws on her top and shorts forgoing any undergarments. It takes her a few minutes to sort out her clothes for the day, brush her teeth, feed her turtle and check her phone and tablet for any Oliver news, Queen Consolidated business or otherwise. It hurts knowing that he slept with Sara in the Arrow Cave but then she remembers Nyssa and she wonders how the assassin feels. Clearly last night had been an indication but Nyssa was still in love with Sara. Felicity just hoped that the night they shared together didn’t make the whole situation harder for her. She didn’t regret it and she hoped Nyssa felt the same way.

 

Felicity finds said assassin in the kitchen, standing at the stove flipping pancakes. There are two mugs of coffee on the bench, one half empty. There are also two white pills next to them that she dry swallows immediately. “You know the last person who made me breakfast was my ex boyfriend and it was a pop tart.”

Nyssa turns around and kisses her on the lips. “And how do I fair?”

“Well you’ve got coffee which is at least a five so it just depends on how good these pancakes taste. You’re looking at the high eights,”

“And if I do this?” Nyssa takes off her shirt, standing in her bra and Felicity’s shorts.

Felicity bites her lip. “At least an nine point eight.”

 

It should be strange, eating at her kitchen bench with a half naked assassin. It isn’t though and she unabashedly moans with her first bite of the pancakes. If Nyssa ever left the mercenary world she could definitely go into the culinary business. The coffee is even better than the pancakes if Felicity is honest and she wonders how many tricks Nyssa has up her sleeve. The thought immediately leads down a dirty road and she can’t help but blush.

 

“So what are you going to do now?” Immediately she wants to take back the words, swallow them up again but she knows it is too late.

Nyssa frowns. “I have no business here. I might return to Nanda Parbat and see if my father has a mission for me.”

Felicity shouldn’t feel disappointed but she does. “Will you come back?”

“If my duties permit it.”

“Well if you do, let me know?”

“Of course,” Nyssa kisses her cheek. “Continue eating, if I remember correctly you need to be at work in half an hour.”

“You’re going?”

“My father will already be curious about my absence from Nanda Parbat.”

 

Felicity watches her leave the room. She finishes her pancakes almost forlornly. She quickly puts the plates in the dishwasher, noticing that Nyssa had already cleaned the frying pan. When she drags herself to her bedroom she sees it empty, any trace of Nyssa gone. 

She showers and dresses quickly; it has to be a new record. A split second decision has her switching out her shoes for her red pair. They are without a doubt her favorite and more than once she has worn them after a night of debauchery. It’s a silent way to brag to everyone she sees that she had great sex with an attractive partner without anyone actually knowing she had great sex with an attractive partner. 

When she arrives at work Oliver is already in his office conversing with Diggle. They both smile at her and it is easier to return the smile to the latter than it is the former. She settles at her desk and sets up for the day almost thankful for the board meeting Oliver has today. Her head might feel like a three year old is throwing a tantrum inside it but at least meetings meant Oliver would be contained to one room for most of the day and therefor be unable to surprise her.

As the day progresses every time Oliver catches her attention from her periphery she can’t help but think about what his night was like. Imagining Oliver and Sara having sex makes Felicity feel dirty and she tries to distract herself with the mountain of paperwork that always seems to accumulate overnight by magic. She quickly sorts through it all, red tray means it needs to be addressed today, blue tray means Oliver needs to sign it and the yellow tray is less important matters that can be done in spare time. It is almost ridiculous how quickly the blue tray fills up and when she smoothens out the stack she holds it together with a clip, pushes out from her desk and walks to Oliver’s.

 

“These need to be signed, try and get them done by the board meeting at one.” She instructs, letting the stack slip from her fingers and onto Oliver’s desk with a quiet thud.

Oliver studies her. “Long night?”

“Is that a confession or an inquiry?”

“Inquiry? Are you okay, Felicity?”

“Peachy. I’m awesome. Never been better. I mean I’m a little tired and my head stopped spinning on the drive to work but other than that I’m perfect.”

 

She spins on her heel and walks away leaving her co-workers to share questioning looks. It takes longer than expected to sort through all the new emails sitting in her inbox but when she is done she has drunk an entire bottle of water and is in desperate need of coffee. She almost considers asking Oliver and Digg if they want coffee but before she can move away from her desk the elevator to their floor is opening and stepping out is Tommy.

 

She stands up to greet him and in usual fashion he kisses her cheek. Tommy is wearing nice pants and a casual yet stylish button down shirt. Despite managing Verdant and not actually needing to dress up he always manages to impress Felicity with his wardrobe choices.

 

“You look like you need coffee which is perfect because I know this coffee shop down the road and I need advice about Laurel.”

“Cutting straight to the point, Tommy.” She teases.

“I figured you’d appreciate efficiency especially since you look like you drank yourself under the table last night.”

Felicity fidgets nervously. “Is it that obvious? Oh god that is _not_ professional.”

“It’s not,” he promises. “But you’re wearing your red heels and while no one else might know what that means I want details. So coffee break?”

“Tommy there’s paperwork and-”

“’Liss I can’t talk to Ollie about Laurel and you give the best advice,” Tommy pleads.

“That’s because I’m a female.”

“It’s because you’re _you._ ”

Felicity smiles. “Are you buttering me up Thomas Merlyn?”

“Is it working?” He shoots back.

“A little.” She admits.

Tommy claps his hands together. “Great!” He strides over to Oliver’s office. “Ollie! I’m borrowing ‘Liss. We’re going to get coffee, we’ll be back in half an hour is that okay? Thanks, talk to you later.”

Felicity laughs as he leads her away quickly by the hand before Oliver can reply. “That was not asking him permission.”

“I didn’t hear him object.”

“You didn’t give him time to!”

“And that’s why our friendship works so well.”

 

Felicity rolls her eyes and follows Tommy into the elevator. They don’t say a word but Tommy spends the whole time side eyeing the woman from the legal department. Felicity isn’t quite sure if it’s because Tommy knows the woman doesn’t like Felicity or because the woman in question is wearing a shirt low cut enough to be just this side of appropriate. Either way the woman gets off at her level without incident and Felicity exits before Tommy when the elevator finally reaches the first floor.

The coffee shop Tommy escorts her to is a new one and she’s pleasantly surprised that she has never been there before. It is sleek and stylish and it matches well with Queen Consolidated’s look. At the counter Tommy orders their usual coffees and two pieces of cheesecake. She doesn’t blink when he pulls out his credit card and the old woman behind her gives Felicity a disapproving look. Tommy is easy to identify and Felicity knows what the woman is thinking.

In the beginning of their friendship when Tommy had been platonically courting her she had protested his habit of whipping out his credit card for everything. Now it no longer bothers her because Tommy is generous at heart but not trusting. He holds the people he loves close and Felicity knows that splashing about his money is a way to solidify his image but also the way Tommy shows his love. Tommy wants nothing but genuine friends and in a strange way being one of them makes Felicity confident, happier, like she’s a better person. It doesn’t actually make her any better than she was pre-friendship; it’s almost like a placebo. She stopped trying to analyze it months ago, chalking it up to it just being _Tommy_.

 

Her friend stabs his cheesecake, scooping up a small mountain on his fork and pointing at Felicity with it. “Tell me everything about last night.”

“Don’t you want to talk about Laurel?” Felicity tries to steer the conversation away from _that_ topic but knows it will be a fruitless effort.

“Stop being evasive, who did you sleep with, were they hot and how good was the sex?”

“Someone you don’t know, ridiculously attractive and I won’t lie, pretty amazing.”

“I feel like you aren’t telling me something.”

“I’m not.” Felicity admits.

Tommy sighs. “You know how this works ‘Liss, we share too many details and then pretend we don’t know how the other masturbates.”

“Tommy!” She hisses. “Can you at least pretend like you care that there are other patrons in this place?”

“Are you going to tell me or not?”

Felicity leans forwards and whispers, “It was a girl.”

Tommy’s mouth drops open. “Holy shit. Did not expect that at all. When did you go all Orange Is The New Black on me?”

“I didn’t.”

“Lesbian sex says otherwise.” He rebuts. “So do I get details?”

Felicity slaps his arm playfully. “Tommy! I’m not a lesbian.”

“Are you going to see her again?”

“I don’t know. Now are you going to tell me about your Laurel problem or not?”

Tommy sighs, putting down his fork. “She’s just been so calm lately. I keep waiting for something but there’s nothing. She’s not asking me to move in with her, she isn’t badgering me about my job and she didn’t even mention the article last week that accused me of cheating with that model from Belgium.”

“You didn’t though.” Felicity points out.

“Exactly! And I thank you for getting rid of that article by the way. Did you get those shoes I sent you?”

“I did, they were gorgeous and you’re welcome. It had gotten a fair amount of traffic already but hopefully they’ll learn to stay away from you when they realize their website crashes every time they accuse you of cheating on Laurel.”

“But what do I do about this whole Laurel thing?”

“So let me get this straight,” Felicity says slowly. “All is calm in Laurel Land? No fighting, no commitment talks, no accusations of cheating?”

“Yeah.”

“And you want to rock the boat?”

Tommy sighs. “I’m just not used to this. Laurel operates in a certain way. She’s goal orientated. She pushed Ollie when they dated constantly. They were a rollercoaster. I mean to be fair Ollie cheated on her constantly but at the same time we’re like that too. Laurel wants something and she attacks. She’s like a pit bull with beautiful hair. I’m so used to the boat rocking that now that it isn’t I don’t know what to do.”

“Just because it’s familiar doesn’t mean it’s good for you.”

“So what do I do?”

“You go with it. Tell her you love her. Take her out to dinner. Buy her those shoes she wants but refuses to buy because they don’t fit in her sensible budget. Enjoy the calm and see how long it lasts.”

 

Felicity finishes off her cheesecake, piling her empty plate onto Tommy’s. She watches him as he sits back, a contemplative look on his face. It’s blatantly clear that wasn’t the advice Tommy had expected. She believes in it though because if Tommy and Laurel want to work in the long run the boat needs to stop rocking all the time. Relationships aren’t all calm but at the same time they aren’t all storm. There needs to be a balance and without one their relationship has no other direction to go than downhill.

 

“I suppose I should get you back to Ollie?” Tommy sighs.

“Probably,” she agrees. “When do you have a night off? We should have dinner.”

“Shouldn’t I be asking you that?” Tommy wiggles his eyebrows, clearly referencing to her second life.

“Oliver can survive without me for one night.”

“Are you sure?” He teases.

Felicity’s mind goes straight to Nyssa’s confession less than twelve hours earlier, of her newfound information about Oliver’s night with Sara. “I’m sure.”

 

If Tommy notices the bitterness lacing her words he doesn’t acknowledge it. Instead he stands up and holds out his arm. She collects her phone and hooks her arm around Tommy’s. They probably look ridiculous but as he leads her out of the café with over exaggerated movements and language that comes from another lifetime she can’t help but smile. As bizarre as Tommy is, he’s a brilliant friend. He knows exactly how to cheer her up and it’s nice to know that while Oliver is Tommy’s first and original best friend, he doesn’t own Tommy. It almost makes her feel rebellious, being friends with Tommy and spending time with him without Oliver. She knows it isn’t a healthy feeling but she can’t help but bask in it a little. It’s a little corner of her life that she has complete control over and she loves it.

It is almost disappointing when they arrive back at her desk. Tommy kisses her cheek goodbye, waves lazily at Oliver and Diggle and then retreats, hands in his pocket. She watches him leave and then sighs, turning in her chair to look at the half finished manila folder on her desk. Her coffee date with Tommy had definitely helped her mentally prepare for the board meeting that would be occurring in an hour.

Be prepared wasn’t just a Boy Scout motto, it was something she had been living by since Oliver had come into her life. Her car was better stocked than most hardcore first aid kits. She had three mobile phones, one for each part of her life and two tablets that were used to keep both her professional lives separate. Her apartment wasn’t exactly prepared but now that she knew how easy it was for someone to break in, _for Nyssa to break in_ , she was definitely going to have to make some changes. Better locks for sure and maybe a baseball bat for protection. Not that she had ever actually played baseball, the sport just looked kind of cool and visitors like her nosy neighbors wouldn’t ask questions about a baseball bat like they would with other weapons. God forbid what Mr. Jensen would say if he found Oliver’s bow in her living room.

 

“Felicity?”

Felicity flinches, snapping up to look at Oliver. “What can I do for you Oliver?”

“Are you sure you don’t want the day off?”

“Do I look that bad?” She snaps.

“You look as lovely as always,” he says slowly. “I just wanted to make the offer again, I know you don’t really like these meetings.”

“That because Mr. Raudenfield spends the whole meeting trying to decide whether or not he wants to look up my skirt or down my top,” she answers, scowling. “But the whole point of me being your EA is that I take your phone calls and assist you in these kinds of meetings, Oliver.”

“I’ll speak to Adam,” he promises.

“Oliver!”

“As the CEO not the vigilante.”

Felicity sighs and sinks into her chair. “Fine but can you do it when I’m not around? I’m not spending the whole meeting awkwardly avoiding his eye contact or spending the whole meeting pretending everything is okay and then you pulling him aside afterward so that I have to avoid him then.”

“That seems fair enough but how exactly do I go about doing this?”

Felicity rolls her eyes. “Just tell him you’ve had meetings with his supervisors about potential sexual harassment cases landing on the legal department’s desk and that in order to avoid that you’re talking to everyone personally to nip the situation in the bud. That way you don’t actually have to make up a name of an employee.”

“Why?”

“Because by not using specifics he’ll start questioning his interactions with every female at Queen Consolidated and it will stop his behavior completely. If he knows it’s just me he’ll still leer at other women…”

“… and so by not saying your name he’ll be a model employee all the time.”

 

Felicity cannot decide whether or not she should roll her eyes or order a trophy on it with Oliver’s name. Oliver is dense to the point of it actually being Ripley’s Believe It Or Not worthy however he isn’t actually stupid. He just happens to be completely and utterly clueless about how to go about being a CEO which was unfortunate when you look at his job title and what it entailed. 

At first it had been tiresome and unbelievable and now Felicity just sees the irony with a fondness she likes to think Pepper Potts would have when dealing with Tony Stark. Not that she’s saying she’s Pepper Potts even though she totally is. That woman is her God and Felicity would give her kidney to meet her. Not literally but that woman…

 

“Felicity?”

“Huh?”

“You keep zoning out on me. You’ve got this look on your face, the kind Thea gets when someone mentions the Victoria’s Secrets fashion show. What’s going on in your brain?”

“I was just thinking about Pepper Potts and how amazing she is. Like that woman knows business. She basically ran Stark Industries from behind the scenes while baby-sitting Tony Stark and now she’s the actual CEO. Like if I were ever going to do one of those goal boards I’d just fill it full of pictures of her. I’ve had a girl crush on her since my MIT days. Not that I actually want to be CEO, I like my job. That’s a lie, I actually liked my old job, you know the one you-”

“- took away from you unceremoniously without permission or discussion? Yes I remember that job. That’s how we met. You were chewing a red pen.”

Felicity stops, straightening up and cocking her head to the side. “You remember that but you don’t remember to show up to the meetings with Isabel Rochev that are scheduled at the same time every week?”

 

Oliver grins at her sheepishly and Felicity just sighs and deflates. It honestly isn’t worth the time or energy to have _that_ argument and with the board meeting so close she’d rather avoid putting a divide between herself and Oliver. She likes to the think that they, along with Diggle, are a team. She keeps them from tanking the company, Oliver is the face of the operation and Digg stops them from killing each other. In a strange way their method of operation at QC is almost identical to their nighttime operations.

 

“Do you have the notes for the meeting?” Oliver asks.

Felicity nods, pushing the now complete manila folder towards him. “Everything you need to know is in there. It’s pretty simple, the company stocks have improved slightly since our last meeting. It’s not really enough to keep Isabitch off our backs but it should ease the minds of the chairs of the board.”

“Isabitch?” Oliver smiles.

Felicity gives him an innocent look. “I like to think we keep to the truth when it comes to her.”

 

The implication that they don’t tell the truth elsewhere is left hanging in the air and Oliver almost trips as he steps forward to take the folder off her desk. She wonders if she was too brazen, if she has given away what she knows. Oliver doesn’t say anything as he leaves though and she breathes easy, sinking back into her chair once more.

Her phone vibrates in her bag and she knows by the pattern of vibration alone that it is her personal phone and that it means she has an email. A warm tingling sensation spreads through her when she sees that it is from Nyssa of all people. She reads it and touches her lips gently when she realizes she is smiling. It’s only a short email and it is incredibly short and ambiguous, enough to throw someone off trail if the account hadn’t been Felicity’s. Her fingers itch to fly across the keyboard and reply but she pushes her phone back into her bag and tries to concentrate on the meeting ahead.

It doesn’t work however it does help her get through the meeting, Isabel’s ice queen persona and Mr. Raudenfield’s inconspicuous leering. Oliver looks murderous and Felicity almost feels like she is betraying him when she silently wonders how Nyssa would deal with Adam Raudenfield. It feels wrong keeping Nyssa’s visit to herself but she knows how impertinent it is to the woman to keep it quiet.

Felicity doesn’t like keeping secrets from Oliver. It makes her feel like a hypocrite, for judging him for not revealing information Oliver doesn’t know she has knowledge of when she has some of her own. She likes to think Team Arrow doesn’t have secrets when in reality she knows they _are_ secrets. They live a secret life and have fake identities. Oliver has five years of his life that no one knows about. Sara is no better. No one in Starling City knows the truth about Felicity herself. The way it is so normal to have these secrets makes her skin crawl.

Felicity doesn’t like secrets, she believes they cause nothing but trouble. It is almost enough to make her confess everything to Oliver as the last board member leaves but then Felicity looks back at her purse and she can’t help but touch her lips once more, as if she can feel the firm press of Nyssa’s on her own. It’s enough to stop her. She doesn’t know where this is going, if it will go anywhere at all, it is enough to make her consider keeping the tidbit of information to herself.

After all adding one little secret to their growing pile couldn’t cause that much trouble.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So what do you think of Felicity and Tommy's friendship? Do you want to see more?

**Author's Note:**

> This story will be updated every Wednesday (Australian time so for most of you that's Tuesday). Feedback is welcome and if you like it hit the kudos button!


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